Sugary drinks can affect everyone in the world. Specifically in the United States, the government is trying to implement a tax on sugary drinks. Although the tax would be unnecessary and unethical, if there is going to be an unnecessary tax on sugary drinks then the revenue from the taxation should be used for rehabilitation and education to stop and prevent obesity and diabetes.
Taxation would only be decent if the money was budgeted for the good and overall well being of people who are obese and people with diabetes. The sugar tax is meant to replicate the tax placed on cigarettes. The cigarette tax started in Iowa in the 1920s and the tax has continued to increase nationwide since. “Massachusetts has one of the highest cigarette taxes in the country – $2.51 on every pack. However, out of the nearly $900 million the state took in from cigarette taxes and settlement funds, lawmakers dedicated only $4.5 million to anti-smoking programs this year” (Wade). Like the cigarette tax most of the money from the sugar tax would go to funding the military because that is the United States’ biggest industry. That should not be the case.
The goal of the tax on sugary drinks is to prevent and end obesity. The …show more content…
People argue that sugary drinks are the cause of those health problems so it is only fair that the tax is used to help others. According to the Huffington Post the average United States citizen consumes 44.7 gallons of soda per year. (By the Numbers). If all of that soda was taxed the government would get hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue. “People with diagnosed diabetes incur average medical expenditures of about $13,700 per year, of which about $7,900 is attributed to diabetes” (The Cost of Diabetes). With millions of dollars from taxes the government could afford to help citizens become more healthy and have another opportunity to take care of
Taxation would only be decent if the money was budgeted for the good and overall well being of people who are obese and people with diabetes. The sugar tax is meant to replicate the tax placed on cigarettes. The cigarette tax started in Iowa in the 1920s and the tax has continued to increase nationwide since. “Massachusetts has one of the highest cigarette taxes in the country – $2.51 on every pack. However, out of the nearly $900 million the state took in from cigarette taxes and settlement funds, lawmakers dedicated only $4.5 million to anti-smoking programs this year” (Wade). Like the cigarette tax most of the money from the sugar tax would go to funding the military because that is the United States’ biggest industry. That should not be the case.
The goal of the tax on sugary drinks is to prevent and end obesity. The …show more content…
People argue that sugary drinks are the cause of those health problems so it is only fair that the tax is used to help others. According to the Huffington Post the average United States citizen consumes 44.7 gallons of soda per year. (By the Numbers). If all of that soda was taxed the government would get hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue. “People with diagnosed diabetes incur average medical expenditures of about $13,700 per year, of which about $7,900 is attributed to diabetes” (The Cost of Diabetes). With millions of dollars from taxes the government could afford to help citizens become more healthy and have another opportunity to take care of